All About Tonight
by November Romeo
Summary: If there was ever a time for you to feel inferior, ordinary and unworthy, it would be now.
1. Daybreak

**All about Tonight**

**Disclaimer: **The author respects the rights of Tachibana Higuchi, creator of Gakuen Alice

**Author's Note:** This is the fifth in a series counting _**Yearbook Day**_, _**Forever and a Day**_, _**Aviator Shades**_ and _**Confections of a Chocoholic**_. To fully appreciate the setting of this story, I would recommend that you read all the others in the given order. Ü

**Dedication: **To Schadenfreude. This fic was inspired by the group's tone— comic, slightly ironic and often irreverent— with a nod to romance, bromance and the occasional inclination to take over the world.

* * *

**Chapter 1: Daybreak**

All the shades were drawn so the room was plunged into complete darkness. A cheerless song played in the background and deepened the gloomy atmosphere. Despite the undeniable opulence of the living area, the air seemed musty and suffocating. It was a clear indication that Life and Movement were seldom visitors there.

Suddenly, the front door was thrown open and Mochiage entered the room. His gaze swept over the one-bedroom rental unit, taking in the disconsolate manner in which it had been maintained. He spotted his friend on the couch, an unmoving lump buried beneath the sheets. There was an open bag of potato chips on the coffee table and a bottle of wine on the floor— last night's dinner no doubt. Thankfully, it was a single bottle this time.

Mochu's eyes narrowed in distaste but also pity. This was no way for a grown man to live, especially someone as estimable as his friend. However, he also knew that the part he could play in pulling him out of his misery was minimal. That was the problem with heartache. You never really know what to do until you get there yourself. No matter how much advice you receive and how many romantic comedies you watch, you don't know what it's like until it's actually you. Mochu learned that the hard way and it looked like his friend was also being taken through the grinder.

Squelching the impulse to show any more than mild sympathy, he crossed the living room and headed for the blinds. He pulled it open in one, merciless motion and overwhelmed the place in mid-morning light.

Ruka Nogi flipped over and groaned. "Fuck."

"Get up."

"It's too early in the morning."

"It's past ten," Mochu countered. He walked around the flat to pick up discarded items on the floor. "We have to go."

Ruka leaned up and supported himself with one arm. "Where?"

"Where? What do you mean where?" He shook his head. "God, this place is rank. When was the last time you let air in?"

Ruka collapsed on the couch and shut his eyes. "Go away, Mochu."

Mochu dumped the items he had collected on the kitchen counter then walked up to Ruka. He stopped next to the sofa and stared him down. Ruka could feel his friend staring daggers at him and so he slowly drew back the arm that covered his face to reveal sad, bleary eyes.

"Move," Mochu hissed.

"Where?"

"On."

Ruka exhaled. "It's not easy."

"I know," he said softly. "But I did it. If you'd stop thinking about Hotaru and yourself for one second, you'd see it's not that hard either."

Point for point. Ruka sniffed then slowly rose. He felt sore from sleeping on the couch but he forced his limbs to move until he was in a respectable sitting position.

Mochu grinned, "Atta boy."

"Don't patronize me." Ruka raked a hand through his hair. "Where are we going?"

"Damn, you really forgot?" he snorted. "Today's Usami's big day."

"No shit." Ruka wiped a hand over his face then he looked at Mochu curiously. "I thought you didn't want anything to do with that."

"I don't," he shrugged. "But Natsume couldn't get anyone else."

"Or wouldn't," Ruka said wryly. "How long do we have?"

Mochu checked his watch. "T-minus seven hours. Go get a bath. I'll put on some coffee while you're gone."

"Thanks."


	2. All that Drama

**All about Tonight**

* * *

**Chapter 2: All that Drama**

"Ruka is up," Kitsuneme read from his cellphone. "Mochu says they'll be there on time."

"Well, it looks like Mochu is good for something after all," Wakako said with a smirk. Kitsuneme smiled briefly but did not comment. He could never understand where her animosity stemmed from but he figured it had something to do with Mochu and Sumire's break up. Still, it couldn't have been the only source of her hostility. Wakako had a tough year and it was about to culminate into what was going to happen tonight. He shook his head at the thought. He had been around Wakako for years but perhaps he had never actually known her.

"Care to share your thoughts?"

"I'd really rather not say," he said cheekily and she rolled her eyes.

If Wakako Usami was asked, she'd say she had a tough _life_. She had grown up in a challenging, extraordinary and complex environment. She didn't know it at the time because it was the only school setting she had ever known, but once they graduated she realized the discrete advantage she had gained for being part of the Alice Academy.

It wasn't because the curriculum had been particularly hard nor was it that she had been surrounded by people so talented that they gave others an inferiority complex. Those things could also be true elsewhere. What made their school life different was the complete seclusion and independence the Academy gave to its students. It had been scary and liberating at the same time. These two things (plus crazy teachers, life and death circumstances, and a campus with debatable safety policies) shaped her and her friends in a way no other school could. Even now, there were things about the Academy that she remembered with varying degrees of fondness and contempt.

In the Academy, she felt like she had been part of something special. Despite their different personalities and multiple quirks, their class was a homogeneous group and they represented what was best about being an Alice. It was disconcerting that she had started to feel detached from her friends in the last year and she was currently fighting her way back to them.

"I hope it's not what's about to happen tonight that's making you scowl," Kitsuneme teased as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

"I'm not scowling."

He laughed. "I'm the one looking at your face."

"Well then, maybe you don't know me as well as you think," she snipped. Wakako regretted her tone when Kitsuneme's face fell. He recovered quickly though and grinned.

"Well then maybe I should remedy that."

They fell silent. Wakako saw him glance towards the Master's bedroom as though he was hoping Natsume or Mikan would emerge to join them. When neither did, he returned his attention to his coffee cup and started stirring milk into it as though the very act was paramount to life. He was clearly uneasy.

An apology lodged in her throat. In her head, Mikan— because her conscience had picked up the annoying habit of using Mikan's voice— started coaxing her but it was just more natural for her not to say anything. Still, she wanted to ease things with her friends. After everything they've put up with when it concerned her, she owed it to them to be nicer.

"Oh hey! Good morning, Mikan!" Kitsuneme greeted suddenly. He sounded a little too excited and her moment to apologize passed.

"Good morning," Mikan returned. Wakako noted there was a spring in her step. Mikan looked like she woke up with the proverbial song in her heart and that was emphasized by the way she hummed softly as she laid some bread on the counter.

"You look like you're in a good mood," Kitsuneme remarked.

"I am, yes," she smiled. "Despite the fact that you boys are about to embark on a dangerous quest, I have a feeling it's going to be a good day."

"So you're not worried about Natsume?"

"I'm more worried about the other guy," she said loyally.

Kitsuneme laughed then nudged Wakako playfully. "Well, it's good to see one of us woke up cheerful today."

"Don't I always?"

"What's your secret?" he teased.

"You had sex," Wakako accused, causing Kitsuneme to knock over his coffee cup. Mikan only shrugged as she handed him a dish rag.

"Yes, she did," Natsume spoke as he walked into the kitchen to join them. He planted a kiss on Mikan's temple then reached for bread and butter. "Unlike you slackers, we try to do six impossible things before breakfast."

"Too much info, Hyuuga," Wakako said, making a face. She glanced at Kitsuneme slyly. "Do you still want to know their secret?"

"No," Kitsuneme said firmly. He emphasized this with a shake of his head. "I'd rather not think about a bro and a… female bro… getting _it_ on. It makes me squeamish."

"You're adorable," Mikan said indulgently.

"And celibate," Natsume snickered. He turned to Wakako and a devilish grin flashed. "Now Usami here, on the other hand, is a complete reprobate."

"And you're a degenerate."

"It means the same thing."

"So you're both in good company," Mikan broke in before they could launch into a full-fledged argument. She slipped her fiancé the morning paper to distract him. Once he focused on a column, Mikan mouthed 'sorry' to Wakako but she waved it off.

As far as she was concerned, Natsume had good reason to talk to her like this. She had spent a year and a half scoffing at him and baring fangs when all he wanted to do at the time was help her. He could insult, patronize and antagonize her all he wanted and she would never hold it against him; not since the insane gamble he made on her that proved not only his loyalty to his friends but also his insane resolve to set things right for them.

Wakako took a breath, trying to clear her head of dire thoughts. She glanced at Mikan and smirked. "If Sumire were here, she'd have known in a trice."

"How?" Kitsuneme wanted to know.

"Sumire can _smell_ the sex off of you."

He raised an eyebrow. "That's so… kinky."

"That's what I said," Natsume quipped as he turned a page. "Figures, fate would give that talent to a woman."

"Oh stop it," Mikan chided. "It's not an ability she uses all the time. Anyway, you guys are in our apartment. I think you're free to conclude that we actually _do_ stuff in here."

"Ugh," Wakako groaned. "A happily engaged woman— I can't stand it."

Mikan stopped cooking for a minute to lean across the counter and peer at her. She wore a devious smile. "You know, we are going to be in a club later—"

"For a mission," Natsume intoned.

"Yes, yes," she said hastily. "But it wouldn't hurt to check out your prospects, right? I'll be your wingwoman."

Kitsuneme and Wakako laughed. "Sorry Mikan," Wakako said. "But scoping hot guys in a sleazy bar with someone as wholesome as you is not going to work."

"I can do it!" Mikan insisted. "For instance, I already know for a fact that the DJ handling tonight's scene is smoking hot."

Kitsuneme shot a furtive glance at Natsume but it looked like he was too engrossed in what he was reading. Wakako wrinkled her nose. "A dubstep DJ?"

"Okay, maybe not," Mikan mused then she snapped her fingers. "I can get us into the VIP lounge. I met this guy the last time I was there with Anna—"

"Are you okay with this?" Kitsuneme asked Natsume loudly.

"I don't care where she gets her appetite as long as she eats at home," Natsume said without looking up from the news.

"I'm surprised you've become so open-minded."

"He's bluffing," Mikan said, rolling her eyes. "Last night, he knocked over a guy in the sports bar because he was standing too close to me."

"He was eyeing you."

"I was eyeing him too," she said unrepentantly.

"So you see your share in the blame," Natsume retorted. "Anyway, let's not forget that he tried to pick you up."

Mikan laughed. "All he said was, 'Hey, pretty lady.'"

"His last words, I'm sure," Kitsuneme snickered. Then he suddenly frowned as a not entirely welcome thought occurred to him. "And that fight led to—"

"Six impossible things, yes," Mikan affirmed. She and Natsume high-fived while Wakako and Kitsuneme both cringed at the thought.

"You two are so corrupted."

"Look, we're engaged and this is our apartment. That means we can do it whenever—" Natsume paused and glanced meaningfully at the countertop, "—and _wherever_ we choose."

"Oh gross!" Wakako cried then backed away from the table. Kitsuneme calmly lifted his cup and saucer then peered at the wood.

"Fascinating," he commented as he scrutinized the surface. "You know, it'd be so funny if one of us had a Microbial Alice."

"He's joking." Mikan swatted Natsume's arm. He snickered again then returned his attention to the paper. She went on to tell Kitsuneme that the guy she and Anna met had in fact been there with his basketball player boyfriend.

As the conversation continued, Wakako suddenly felt bereft. She wanted this. She wanted all of this, all the time. She wanted to have breakfast in a sun-lit kitchen in an apartment full of laughter. Every time she visited Natsume and Mikan, it was easy to imagine that the outside world didn't exist and none of the awful things happened to her in the last year. She was safe here and they were going to protect her because she was worth caring about. Once, she thought she almost had this but that expectation had quickly turned to dust.

Three years ago, Wakako had gotten engaged to a fellow banker. He had been new in the firm, and was a couple of years older. He'd blindsided her with romance and good conversation. He'd won her over with intelligence and privilege. She had been happy and was nearly the first person in the gang to get married. She was in jail three months before the ceremony, serving time for extortion and blackmail. Her good name was in tatters, her assets were frozen and the career she had ruthlessly built went down the drain. Her fiancé was gone.

"_We are going to do everything to get you out of this," Mikan had promised her the day she showed up at the detention center. "Natsume is working round the clock to help you."_

"_What if you don't find him?"_

"_We will," she said resolutely. "He doesn't know who he messed with and stupid men are very easy to find."_

She went home a week later after Natsume's organization stripped the evidence against her to shreds. They still needed to find the culprit though, so he dedicated sixteen hours every week to her case. She knew this wasn't part of his regular mission roster so he must be doing it on his own time. Natsume had tried to warn her against her ex-fiancé so what she was most grateful about was that despite his obvious frustration at her for not listening sooner, he never said, 'I told you so'.

The entire incident took her down a peg... or five. The girls had been there for her through everything. Sumire, ever a constant presence in her life, spent nearly every evening at her place. Misery loved company and since Sumire's relationship status had also imploded, it was good that they had each other.

"_You two are going to combust," Mikan told her. "You need to be around other people too."_

"_I'm no good around other people."_

"_You're not the only one fumbling through this, you know," she said. "Nonoko is also trying to make amends with everyone."_

"_Did her fiancé jilt her too?"_

"_No, she thinks she jilted us," Mikan said delicately. "But no one's giving her a hard time about it. That's just not what we do."_

"_Ugh! You're too nice. Way too nice."_

Mikan had been right though. Nonoko Ogasawara had avoided the gang for the better part of six years in favor of her career. She was out of touch with everyone. She was trying to fix that and it looked like all of them were ready to let her. It helped Wakako to know she wasn't the only one who drifted away after graduation. Still, they were in very different boats.

"Wakako, are you okay to move by seven?"

"What?"

"Seven o'clock," Mikan repeated then she must have realized her thoughts had wandered off because she smoothed it over before the boys could notice. "That should give us enough time to meet up with Anna at her bakeshop."

"Speaking of Anna, I have to go see her too," Kitsuneme said. He stood up and drained his coffee. "A guy was pestering her to go out and she agreed to lunch. She needs me to third wheel so as to dispel the idea of it being a date."

Mikan's eyebrows scrunched together. "Third wheel?"

"Yeah, we do it all the time," he laughed. "When I was taking up culinary arts with her, I dissuaded two bakers and a grill master."

Kitsuneme had a wide array of academic pursuits before settling on his current profession as a travel blogger. He and Anna became close friends during his brief stint as a would-be chef.

Natsume lowered his paper. "So basically… you're Anna's cockblocker."

"No!" Kitsuneme scowled. He definitely took offense this time. "Seriously man, what is wrong with you this morning?"

"_This_ morning?" Wakako snorted. "He's like that every day."

"Ruka says it comes from being in a happy, committed relationship," Mikan added. "Being the other half of said relationship, I can tell you it's not the case."

"Hey Natsume, if you're still wondering why Mikan won't set the date," Wakako spoke with an evil smile then she gestured around the table, "_This_ is your answer."

For the first time since he entered the kitchen, Natsume looked ill at ease. Mikan rolled her eyes at Wakako. "Don't listen to her. That's _not_ the reason."

"So what is the reason?" Natsume asked. He folded up his paper to give his fiancée his full attention. Kitsuneme and Wakako exchanged a glance when it seemed as though they were about to be caught in the middle of a prenuptial dispute.

Mikan didn't look fazed. She took her time preparing two bento lunches then closed the lids. She seemed entirely immune to Natsume's fixed stare as she secured a tidy knot on the bandana and handed it to her fiancé with a cheerful smile.

"Here's your lunch," she said primly. "It's in the shape of a heart."

Natsume glowered but he went to his feet anyway and grabbed his work bag. "Did you make it a broken heart?"

"Oh, don't be dramatic," Mikan said as she shuffled him to the door. Kitsuneme saw his cue and grabbed his things too. Natsume stopped at the door to put on his coat. He faced her again and Mikan automatically started fixing his collar and straightening his tie.

It was practically a ritual, part of Natsume's objective to slowly wear her down until she chose a date for the wedding. "Marry me."

"Yes."

"I'll take care of you."

"I know."

"Set the date."

"I will." She stood on her toes to give him a kiss. "Go deal with Wakako's douchebag fiancé."

"Done."

"Give him hell. Take care. Love you."

Mikan shut the door after them then Wakako saw her lay an affectionate hand against the wood before returning to the kitchen. Wakako sipped her tea. It suddenly tasted very bitter and she hated having these feelings around Mikan.

"He's not one in a million," Mikan said suddenly.

"Who?"

"Natsume," she said. "There are many others like him."

"Really?" Wakako said cynically. "How many passive-aggressive, perverted flamecasters do you know?"

"Just one," Mikan admitted then she grinned. "But as far as good-looking nice guys go? There are more of them than you think."

"Where are they?"

"In the friend zone," she answered promptly. Mikan placed the cooking pan in the sink then she poured herself some tea. "Some of them are just fighting their way out."

"Then how did I end up with a douchebag?" Wakako couldn't help but ask.

"That's just it, you didn't," Mikan said wisely. "I think it's time you forgave yourself Wakako. No one's blaming you and after tonight, you can put it all behind."

"I'd like that."

Mikan was right. It was all about tonight. Everything hinged on what was going to happen at the club. She had people helping her now. She didn't have to feel so alone and everything else she wanted, she could just deal with later.

"All right, let's go."

"Where?" Mikan said in surprise.

"We're going to Nonoko," Wakako said decisively. "We'll surprise her. Then if she could swing it, we'll drag her with us tonight."

Mikan grinned. "Natsume will hit the roof. Let's do it."


	3. Keep on Dancing

**All about Tonight**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Keep on Dancing**

Wakako's eye wandered around the club. Music blared from the speakers, selected by the smoking hot dubstep DJ. The dance floor was full. This ordinary party scene that used to soothe her did nothing to calm her nerves. She was occupying one of the cocktail tables near the center of the room. It was a very conspicuous spot just as Natsume had intended.

Her eyes scanned the second floor. She spotted Mochu and Ruka talking to each other and for a moment she allowed herself to entertain the idea that others thought they were lovers. It would be funny and her two friends would be mortified. Her gaze drifted back to the first floor and she saw Natsume and Mikan whispering. Mikan was trying to look innocent while Nasume was talking through gritted teeth. He was probably reacting to Nonoko's presence, an accomplice they hadn't told him they were bringing along.

"Would you like to dance?"

"No," she said shortly and the poor guy who asked wandered off. She didn't even realize someone had approached. _Not yet_, she told herself. She couldn't dance just yet.

Wakako shut her eyes for a moment. Through the blackness, she willed herself to envision what she wanted after this was over. This was an exercise, an old habit she'd developed growing up because of her Alice. She used to find the Transport Object Alice very limited. It didn't give her much to go on except to be a natural thief. One day, she was caught in the rain at Central Town and she wished she had the umbrella inside the bookstore across the street. She wanted it badly and in the next instant, it was hers. That moment was inconsequential but it changed her entire world view.

In time Wakako learned that as long as she could see it in her mind's eye, as long as she could visualize what she wanted and have it situated within her reach— she could obtain it. This translated into her life philosophy and soon she found herself imagining and visualizing every goal and every aspiration. It worked for a while, until she met her ex-fiancé and she realized her vision was cloudy and her judgement was impaired.

"Wakako."

Speak of the devil.

Wakako opened her eyes and focused on the man that haunted her dreams night after night for months on end. She hardened her heart against him, willing that to be enough. He was thinner, gaunt even and she found minute satisfaction at the knowledge that Natsume had chased him to the end of his rope.

"I didn't think you'd want to meet in such a public place." He glanced around and tugged self-consciously at his tie. "So you're ready to negotiate?"

She would rather be dragged over hot coals than come into another agreement with him. _Steady girl_, she thought. _Do your job._

"Give me the notebook," she said. "That's all I need."

"And you'll free my assets, unblock my passport and call off the hound dogs you have tailing me," he fired back.

"None of that is up to me."

"Bullshit," he hissed. He was far from relaxed now. "I know you, with your fancy Academy and endless connections. Your lot thinks everyone's beneath you. It's up to you to end this."

"You're wrong." Her voice grew cold. "If it were up to me, I'd have a gun to your head."

He smirked. "There's my girl."

_Fuck you_, she thought. "Do you have the notebook or not?"

"It's here. It's in the glove compartment of my car."

"Still driving your douchebag Lambo?"

He chuckled, "You know it."

And that's when she had him. In a blink, she could see his car and the shotgun seat she'd ridden in so many times. When her eyes flickered open, she felt the notebook holding her secrets, her clients' restricted information and all incriminating evidence materialize in her hands. It was such a small thing that had done her in. In the next instant the notebook flew out of her hands and she saw Mochu catch it on the second floor.

Her heart was racing. She released her breath. "Then it's over."

"What?"

"Satoshi Ginjiro, you're under arrest for the charges of extortion, blackmail and fraud," Natsume said tonelessly behind him.

"What is this?" he demanded as he spun around. In response, Natsume mercilessly grabbed his wrist and twisted it around to restrain him.

"I swear to use everything you say against you," he hissed.

They struggled. Wakako saw Kitsuneme leap over the balcony and fly down to the first floor to help Natsume. Ruka was there too and joined the scuffle. A table was overturned and Wakako lost her footing. She stumbled backwards right into Mochu who had also rushed to the scene.

"Are you all right?"

She didn't respond. Instead she hurried forward just as the boys had successfully detained her ex–fiancé. Their gazes met and for a moment she wanted to believe the pain she saw in his eyes was for her even though it was foolish.

"We're all Alices in here," she told him. She forced triumph into her tone even though she didn't really feel it. "If there was ever a time for you to feel inferior, ordinary and unworthy, it would be now because you're right. You are beneath my lot."

Satoshi Ginjiro went still and that's when Wakako knew he was no longer the guy, that man or her ex-fiancé to her. He was just another name now and this was where they would part. The lawsuit will take another year but she was sure she could convict him.

Natsume nodded to her then started to lead him away. When Satoshi stepped past her, she was just raw enough to ask, "Did you ever care about me?"

She didn't know what she wanted to hear. She didn't even know why she bothered to ask. Part of her was certain that she would be far more wounded if he said—

"No."

So she was all right.

Ruka and Kitsuneme went with Natsume outside. Around her everyone returned to their own business, as though the arrest didn't happen. The other girls were answering any lingering questions in the air. Wakako breathe easy as she was left alone.

"He was lying, you know," Mochu said softly. Her eyes flicked to him. "I saw the way he looked at you."

"Let's not put meaning where there isn't. He never looked at me as anything but his ticket to a free meal."

He shook her head. "I don't know about all those other times. I'm talking about just now. You didn't see it, but the way he looked back when he thought you were hurt… he cared."

"He cares about money more."

"Yes, that's the sad truth. I'm just saying… you're not so contemptible, Usami."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't ever try to flatter girls, Mochu. You're sure to get punched."

"I'm serious." Mochu glanced at the door as though Ginjiro still stood there. "He must have loved you in his own way."

Wakako looked away, unsure whether it was all right to smile at that. She didn't trust herself just yet. She couldn't allow herself to connect any positive thoughts to him. All she knew, all she truly knew was that she was free.

"What am I supposed to do now?" She meant that to be rhetorical so she was startled when Mochu leaned across the table to meet her gaze.

He spoke softly, "You pick up where you left off, earn back what you lost, put yourself back together with what you've got to work with."

"Then what?"

Mochu held out a hand to her. "Then… you keep dancing." She hesitated for only a moment because she wanted to dance and she knew the first step would be so much easier if she was moving to the beat of a friend.

"I still hate you," she said before placing her hand in his. Mochu laughed softly then steered her to a wider space on the floor.

"On principle, I understand," he said. "That's okay too."

There were hard-earned lessons in life. Nothing of value ever comes easy. Sometimes, even if she saw it in her mind's eye it wasn't hers to take until she was worthy of it. She didn't know where she would end up after this. Her slate wasn't exactly wiped clean. Still, she was ready to put her past behind her and prepare for the next big thing.

Until then, she was going to keep dancing.

**THE END**


End file.
